1. Field of the Invention
The present invention pertains to the art of refrigerators and, more particularly, to a water product dispensing system for a refrigerator that displays a fault condition associated with the water product only upon activation of the dispensing system.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Dispensing systems have been incorporated into various household appliances, particularly refrigerators, for some time. The dispensing systems are designed to release water and/or ice, depending upon a particular model of refrigerator. Over time, dispensing systems were provided with water filters designed to remove impurities from the water prior to a dispensing operation. Often times, the water filter was also connected to an ice maker in order to filter the water prior to being formed into ice cubes.
While water filters provide a nice benefit, over time, the efficacy of the water filter is lowered as more and more impurities are removed from the water. Thus, in order to maintain a proper level of filtration, the water filter must be periodically replaced. However, how often the water filter requires replacement will vary from consumer to consumer. That is, consumers that use the dispensing system more frequently, or use a lot of ice, will find themselves replacing water filters more often than consumers who utilize the dispensing system less often.
Many dispensing systems include some form of warning that provides an indication to the consumer that the water filter is, or soon will be, in need of replacement. Early dispensing systems simply provided a decal, having a date indicator of some form, that informed the consumer of an approximate replacement date. Unfortunately the decal could not take into account various factors regarding a need for filter replacement such as, for example, actual use of the filter. Thus, manufactures provided a visual warning indicating the need to replace the filter. The visual warning was typically tied to a flow sensor or timer that determined an amount of usage of the dispensing system.
While effective at providing a more accurate warning of an impending need to replace a water filter, the visual alarm is not well suited for use in today's more modern dispensing systems. Modern dispensing systems typically include an LED or LCD display that presents the consumer with a variety of options. When incorporated into a refrigerator, the display will enable the consumer to control lighting, dispensing water or ice, and/or whether to dispense crushed or cubed ice. In addition, the display will provide a signal to the consumer that it is time to replace the water filter. However, providing a continuous signal on an LED or LCD display can often lead to “burn-in.” That is, the signal will remain on the display, in phantom, even when the signal is not active. Thus, presenting a continuous signal on the display, will reduce an overall service life of the display. In addition, LED or LCD displays typically employ a backlight to enhance viewability of any displayed text. Providing a continuous backlight to the display will also reduce service life.
Based on the above, there exists a need in the art for an alarm display for a water dispensing system. More specifically, there exists a need for a display that can present a signal indicating an alarm condition to a consumer only during times when the consumer is likely to view the signal, and not during times when it is unlikely that the consumer will view the signal.